Libsyn Directory

Your “Discipline” Might Be Dysregulation with Dr. Derek Hrabovsky | EP 72

Release Date: 02/19/2026

I Healed My Burnout and My Relationships Changed Completely | The High Performer Reset (Part 4) | EP 83

The Higher Alignment Podcast

In this episode of the High Performer Reset series, I’m sharing what changed in my relationships after healing my burnout. In the last episode, I talked about what my relationships looked like before: guarded, reactive, disconnected, and unable to fully receive support. This episode is the after. Once I learned how to regulate my nervous system and process stress, I softened. Not in a weak way, but in a way that allowed me to let people in. My work relationships became deeper, I felt more supported, and I started showing up with more trust, confidence, and care. In my personal life, I...

Burnout Turned Me Into the “Office B!ch” | The High Performer Reset (Part 3) | EP 82

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, part of The High Performer Reset Series, I’m diving into how burnout impacted my relationships in one of the deepest ways possible. I share what life looked like when I was completely disconnected from myself, overwhelmed by stress, and operating from pure survival mode. From being cold and reactive at work, to gossiping, struggling to connect, and feeling emotionally unavailable even with the people I loved most, burnout was showing up everywhere in my life. I talk about how being constantly dysregulated affected my leadership,...

How I Fixed My Relationship With Food | The High Performer Reset (Part 2) | EP 81

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, I share what my relationship with food, energy, and my body looks like now after healing my burnout. If part one was about survival mode, this is about what happens when your body finally feels safe again. I walk you through how I shifted from emotional eating, constant cravings, and low energy into a place where I actually feel in control of what I eat, without relying on extreme discipline or restriction. I break down what my day-to-day looks like now, how I approach food, why protein became a focus for me, and how I’ve built...

I Thought It Was a Food Problem | The High Performer Reset (Part 1) | EP 80

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, I open up about my relationship with food, sugar, stress, and burnout in a way I never really have before. I share what life looked like when I was working long hours in the luxury auto industry, constantly living in fight or flight, skipping meals, eating on the go, relying on takeout, and using sugar as a coping mechanism. What I didn’t understand at the time was that my body wasn’t failing me. It was trying to keep up with chronic stress the best way it knew how. I talk about how burnout impacted my digestion, why I used to...

I’m Finally Ready to Share Our Miscarriage Story | EP 79

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, I’m sharing something deeply personal that has shaped the past few months of my life. Thomas and I found out we were pregnant in October, and it was one of the most beautiful and unexpected moments we’ve ever experienced. But just a few weeks later, everything changed. We discovered that the baby had stopped developing, and on Christmas Day, I experienced a miscarriage. This episode is not just about loss. It’s about love, healing, and what this experience opened up inside of me. I share what it felt like to go through it...

You’re Creating Stress That Doesn’t Exist | EP 78

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, I share a recent experience where unexpected expenses triggered stress and scarcity, even though I was financially okay. I found myself overthinking, trying to control the situation, and creating pressure that did not need to exist. The real issue was not what was happening, but the state I was operating from. I walk through the shift that helped me move from fear and control into trust and clarity, and how everything started to feel lighter once I changed my internal response. If you have been feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or...

If You Keep Slipping Back Into Old Habits?…This Episode is for You | EP 77

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, I’m breaking down a truth that most people don’t talk about when it comes to nervous system regulation… it takes effort, every single day. If you’ve been doing the work and still finding yourself getting triggered, overwhelmed, or slipping into old patterns, this episode is for you. I want you to understand that this isn’t a sign you’re failing—it’s actually part of the process. I share why regulation isn’t a place you arrive at, but a skill you practice, especially in a world that constantly floods us with...

Luxury Matchmaker Reveals Why Successful People Struggle in Dating with April Davis | EP 76

The Higher Alignment Podcast

Take the High Performer Stress Assessment → In this episode, I sat down with luxury matchmaker April Davis to unpack one of the biggest questions high-achieving women face in dating: what’s the difference between healthy standards and plain old pickiness? We talked about how real standards are rooted in your values, not surface-level preferences, and how so many people unknowingly block love by chasing a fantasy instead of staying open to real connection. April shared what she sees over and over again in the dating world, from women dismissing incredible men over height to men being...

Why High Achievers Struggle to Change (Even When They Know Better) | EP 75

The Higher Alignment Podcast

In this episode of the Higher Alignment Podcast, I’m breaking down why change can feel so hard, especially for high performers who know what they “should” be doing but still can’t seem to follow through. I unpack the difference between capability and capacity, and why so many resilient, driven people end up sabotaging themselves by expecting their body to perform at a level it simply cannot support right now. I also dive into the nervous system side of change and explain why you cannot think your way into regulation. Real healing and sustainable growth happen through intentional...

I’m Finally Sharing My Burnout Story | EP 74

The Higher Alignment Podcast

In this reintroduction episode, I share the story behind how I became a burnout and nervous system coach for high performers. After returning to Vietnam for the first time since I was 12 or 13, I felt called to reconnect with my roots and explain how my upbringing shaped my drive, resilience, and survival-mode wiring. I talk about my parents’ journey from Vietnam to Canada, what it meant to grow up in a hardworking immigrant household, and how performance became my identity through competitive dance and swimming. I also open up about my nine-year career at Mercedes-Benz, the “golden...

More Episodes

If your success is costing your health, your peace, or your relationships, something is off.

In this episode of the Higher Alignment Podcast, I sat down with physician and executive coach Derek Hrabovsky to break down a game changing distinction that explains why so many high performers look successful on paper but feel like they are falling apart behind the scenes.

We unpack the difference between capability and capacity. Capability is what you can do, your skills, competence, and output. Capacity is what it costs you to do it, your nervous system bandwidth, your ability to hold pressure, recover, stay clear, and remain relationally present. Derek explains how leaders can rely on capability for years while their capacity quietly depletes, showing up as reactivity, narrowed judgment, inability to switch off, and compulsive coping like alcohol, sugar, work, or intensity chasing.

We also explore how unmet core needs drive these patterns, why shame and self judgment make it worse, and why most workplaces are built to extract from people instead of replenish them. This conversation is a wake up call and a roadmap. Because the goal is not to perform at all costs. The goal is to lead, live, and succeed without losing yourself in the process.

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Key Takeaways

Capability gets results; capacity protects your health, relationships, and judgment. You can be highly capable and still be running on fumes.
Compulsive coping is data, not a moral failure. It’s a warning light that your nervous system needs support and your core needs aren’t being met.
Too many options = dysregulation. When you’re hungry for everything and trying to fix everything, regulate first—then simplify and choose what matters.

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Episode Highlights: capability vs capacity, nervous system regulation, high performer burnout, executive burnout, leadership capacity, emotional regulation, cognitive load, stress recovery, relational presence, compulsive coping, addiction and burnout, shame and self-judgment, emotional intelligence for leaders, psychological safety, capacity-based leadership, healthcare burnout, health tech leadership, resilience vs regulation, recovery after stress, high performance without burnout, longevity for leaders, healthspan, extractive workplace culture, regenerative leadership, autonomy at work, micromanagement and burnout

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Links & Resources

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-derek-hrabovsky/?originalSubdomain=uk

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